Franklin Springs, GA – The Emmanuel Women's Volleyball team hosted regional foe, Lander University tonight in non-conference action. The Lions took the first set in competitive fashion, winning 25-22. The home team carried their momentum into set two, earning the 25-17 win and closed out the game with a 25-22 win in set three to earn the sweep. With the win, the Lions improve to 19-6 on the season and extend their win streak to 12.
Marusa Pesut started off strong for the Lions on the service line with four consecutive aces, that paired with a kill by
Ellie Jackson gave the Lions an early 5-0 lead. An ace by Jackson and kills from
Natalie Wilson and
Cailin Pritchard pushed the Lions lead to 11-2. Midway through the set, the Lions led 15-6, with
Brooke Lee getting involved on the offensive end. The Bearcats responded well, closing the gap late to tie the set at 21-21, but the Lions used kills from Jackson to finish strong, earning the set one win, 25-22.
Lander jumped out to an early lead in the 2
nd set, 5-2 but
Brianna Bigelow and
Jada Porter came up big for the Lions to help the home team retake the lead 6-5. The Lions continued on a 10-1 run made up of kills by Wilson, Porter and Pritchard to make it 15-7 Lions. Late in the set, the Lions led 21-14 and closed out the set on an ace by
Isabel Miller to earn the 25-17 win.
In the third set, the teams traded points early with Lander taking a 7-5 lead. The Lions answered with kills by Jackson, Bigelow and Lee alongside an ace from
Madelyn Banton to take the lead, 10-7. Midway through the set, the Bearcats tied things up at 14-14, pulling ahead 18-16 but the Lions responded well with kills by Pritchard and Jackson to take the 20-19 lead. Lander retook the lead on an attack error by the Lions, 22-21 but the Lions scored the final four points to earn the set win, 25-22 and the sweep, 3-0.
Overall, the Lions had 46 kills, 7 aces, 6 blocks, 43 assists, and 61 digs.
Cailin Pritchard led the Lions with 13 kills, with
Ellie Jackson adding a double-double of 10 kills and 19 digs.
Marusa Pesut served up 4 aces, while dishing out 42 assists to lead the team.
Brianna Bigelow picked up 4 blocks, with Pesut adding 3.
Next up, the Lions will host Shorter University tomorrow at 5PM. For more information on Emmanuel University athletics, visit goeulions.com.
